Fifty years ago this month, Fleetwood Mac gave birth to “Landslide” with their self-titled album. If you’ve been following this Diary well, you know that I have “a song for every season“, “a reason for every song“, and a few so near to my heart strings that I’ve memorialized them more than once. This one, however, is now and has always been so moving and powerful to me that I’ve yet to find the proper words to honor it, and I know I’m not alone in that it’s one of the most difficult songs for me to hear because it buries me in feelings so deep beneath my skin that I can’t make it through the first three seconds without literally “landsliding”. Now that I think of it, it’s one of my “go-to’s” for those days I just need to check my own pulse or make myself shed tears that need to be shed.
But guess WHO else was given birth to twenty years ago today at the exact moment this entry is being published, “4:29pm”? My firestorm of a daughter, who ironically reminds me SO much of Stevie with her wildflower gypsy heart and wise beyond her years soul, that now that I think of it, I don’t think it’s an irony! So, what better way to honor them both? Still, how exactly do I correlate the triumph that is my masterpiece on this day that ends both our journeys in “the teenager hood” and this song together?
As far as I’m concerned, the true purpose of art in every form, as well the artists who create it, is to embody the fact that God is always here with us in all things big and small in such a way that whether we or even they are aware, it pulls us through our faith journey by all but begging us to seek and find Him hidden in this masterful, complex, and collaborative Creation He paints across the canvas of our souls.
Take for instance, Michalangelo’s “The Creation of Adam“, a part of the Sistine Chapel ceiling. God’s arm is fully extended, while Adam’s arm is relaxed with a slightly bent finger. Although he’s not been with us since 1564 and we can’t truly know what was in his mind on the day he picked up that paintbrush, it appears that he decided to represent the divine breath of life with God’s and Adam’s fingers “almost” touching each other with a powerful gesture that represents the creation of the first man with the His index finger, ready to spark life into Adam upon contact of their hands. This detail has led scholars and theologians alike to interpret the scene symbolically as God reaching out with His divine energy toward humanity, but man having to actively choose to reach back for it. While studying this painting in college, I recall having read that the tiny little gap between their fingers was intended to embody our “free will”. I agree.
In short? God’s love and presence are always patiently waiting nearby, but the connection requires that we choose it. And such is the story of the human parent child journey as well, my friends. There comes a time for us to really cut the cords, hold on loosely, and just let them go on and fly. If we’ve done our job well, they’ll always come back to us. If not, pray God we find the error in any of our ways that caused them to run away and never look back, and even more so that we’re offered the grace of an opportunity to fix them.
Now then, “The Landslide” …
It’s widely known that Stevie wrote it during one of the most vulnerable points in her life when she was unsure of both the direction of her music career and her relationship with Lindsey Buckingham. It’s a conversation she had with herself while gazing at the Aspen sky, which I of all people can appreciate as an avid “talk and sing love songs to yourself” kinda girl. Her bittersweet take on navigating uncertainty amid ever-changing and fleeting times and her fears of how things can come crashing down around us in an instant are a gentle yet haunting reminder that the best that any of us can do is just savor every last drop of love like it’s the last we’ll ever taste, remain prepared for all the changes when it’s time to let some seasons go, and continually search for ways to fortify ourselves with the resilience it takes to survive here.
And so, with that, I say THIS to not just my baby girl on her 20th birthday, but my son, their future spouses, AND my future grands:
No, I’m NOT afraid of changin’, though I’ve built my life around YOU. Time really has made me bolder as I’ve gotten older, and you’re getting older, too. So, when you see my reflection in the mirror of your skies, don’t you DARE worry about all those landslides! You’re MY kids, you see, which means YOU GOT THIS, because just as the child in MY heart learned to rise above the many changing seasons of my life with the “Power + Grace” of a battle born warrior forged from fire, so too will the children OF my heart! Now, go on and sail through those ocean tides and climb some mountains! But also? Don’t forget to stop back home ANY time you want. Just because you’re heading off to build kingdoms and castles of your own now, it doesn’t mean you won’t ALWAYS have open doors and rooms here in mine!
I love you to The Moon and back! … Momma
The Diary Of My Perfection 
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